1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to semiconductor devices. More specifically, the invention relates to the production of semiconductor devices which require processing wafers where halogens are used during the processing.
2. Description of the Related Art
During the formation of semiconductor devices, wafers are processed in a processing tool where they are subject to processes that may result in residual process gases, segments and byproducts being left on the surface of the wafers. These residues may include, but are not limited to halogen-containing species.
One method of removing the residue is by treating the processed wafers in a downstream stripper with a microwave or inductively coupled plasma source. A downstream stripper module may be placed as one module in a processing tool. The processed wafer would then be placed in the downstream stripper module where the halides on the surface of the processed wafer would be removed/reduced. However, this stripping process occurs after processing within the vacuum of the processing tool. Thus the downstream stripper module takes up one of the valuable spots in the processing tool. Using this spot in the processing tool for the downstream stripper module means that the spot cannot be used for another process chamber which results in a decrease in wafer processing throughput.